As pool play gave way to bracket play on Sunday at the University Sports Complex, the courts were lined with the biggest programs and best talent that New England had to offer. BABC, Mass Rivals and New England Playaz advanced to the Final Four in all three high school divisions while Expressions Elite did the same in the 10th and 9th grade divisions as well. Ultimately, all three finals came down to the Mass Rivals and BABC. In…
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Shooting Touch is announcing today the creation of the Chuck Kittredge Scholarship Fund in memoriam of Shooting Touch Co-Founder Justin Kittredge's beloved uncle Charles Kittredge who recently passed away this June. Known as one of the best fundamental youth camps in the area, the Fund will provide (40) summer scholarships to Shooting Touch's Summer Kids Camp with legendary Hall of Fame Coach Bob Hurley fromJersey City, NJ. The scholarships will be available to 2nd-9th male and female youth from under-resourced…
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The Zero Gravity Finals punctuated the spring AAU season by welcoming over 500 teams to the state of Massachusetts for the biggest grassroots tournament of the year. With the vast majority of the New England’s top programs in attendance, day one of the event was like a who’s who of New England’s best: Varsity Division: Bruce Brown – BABC - The electric Brown was able to create numerous highlight dunks in transition but also showcased his ability to post up…
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Four local sophomores - Jermaine Samuels (Rivers School), Kimani Lawrence (Cushing Academy), Philmon Gebrewhit (New Mission) and Samuel Japhet-Mathias (Vermont Academy) - are currently in St. Louis, Missouri on the campus of St. Louis University for the annual Nike Elite One Hundred. The event features the 100 best underclassmen in all of Nike grassroots basketball. The action got underway on Thursday and will continue through Sunday morning. The top performers in the camp will then be selected to move on…
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ESPN released updated national rankings this week beginning with a new ESPN 100 in the class of 2016 on Tuesday followed by the ESPN 60 of 2017 on Wednesday. New England was well represented on both lists. MacDuffie School big man Omari Spellman held firm to the 16th spot in the national rankings while Sacred Heart High School guard Mustapha Heron and Vermont Academy guard Bruce Brown held serve as well in the 26th and 56th spots nationally. Wilbraham and…
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UMass kicked off what is expected to be a big 2016 recruiting class with a local prep product on Tuesday when Unique McLean committed to the Minutemen. The six-foot-one guard spent his junior sesason at nearby MacDuffie School after beginning his high school career at the Hoosac School. McLean has run with the PSA Cardinals, previously Team Scan, for his entire grassroots career. One of the most explosive athletes in the country, McLean became a YouTube sensation at a young…
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Dondre Rhoden, who spent his post-graduate year at Putnam Science Academy this year, realized his division I dream on Tuesday night when he accepted a full division I scholarship offer from Farleigh Dickinson University. Rhoden was recruited primarily at the division II level during the course of his post-graduate year but took advantage of a new NCAA rule allowing recruitable student-athlete to work out at NCAA institutions. Rhoden, who has grown an inch over the course of the last year…
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The 44th annual Boston Shootout took place this weekend at Cathedral High School and welcomed one of the best fields in years with teams from all three national sneaker circuits. Always a very exclusive event, the Shootout is very unique in today’s world of grassroots basketball as they play only one game at a time, and Sunday’s action treated us to a series of marquee match-ups culminating with a double-header between the host club, BABC, and the New England Playaz.…
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The Vermont Academy Basketball program hosted a professional development event yesterday for AAU, college and high school coaches New England. Presenters included Krossover's Jaki Golden, Northeastern associate head coach Dave McLaughlin, Brown head coach Mike Martin, UMass head coach Derek Kellogg and Indiana head coach Tom Crean. Topics included leadership, ball screen coverage, culture building, early offense, analytics, communication and player development. AAU programs represented were New Heights, New England Playaz, and the New Rens. Prep Schools represented were Vermont…
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Kimball Union Academy and New England Playaz guard Crew Ainge committed to Utah State on Saturday, following an official visit to their campus earlier this week. Ainge will take his two year Mormon Mission following his graduation and join the Aggies in the class of 2017. The youngest son of Boston Celtics' President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge, Crew became the most widely recruited prospect left on the board in New England's 2015 class this spring, landing scholarship offers from…
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